Australian gold mining company Evolution Mining has entered into a binding agreement to acquire an 80% stake in the Northparkes copper-gold mine. They company brought it from CMOC Group for $475 million (A$722.35 million) in cash.The purchase price includes a $400 million upfront payment and a $75 million contingent payment.
Evolution will acquire the stake from CMOC’s Australian subsidiary, CMOC Mining.Evolution has also agreed to an offtake agreement with IXM, a subsidiary of CMOC, under which IXM will purchase the copper concentrates produced from the mine.
The company plans to fund the transaction through a A$525 million fully underwritten institutional placement and a new A$200 million five-year loan facility.
Benefits for Evolution
- Increased copper exposure: Positions the company in a high-demand mineral market
- Strong resource base: Proven mine with a long history of Ore Reserve replenishment
- Cash flow generation: Asset entering a profitable phase, aligning with Evolution’s strategy
- Balanced capital structure: Transaction structure prioritizes financial stability
Northparkes is located 27km from Parkes in New South Wales and has been operating since 1994. As of last year, the reported mineral resources for the mine were 526.9 million tonnes (mt) of copper at 0.55%, 0.19 grams per tonne (g/t) gold and 1.87g/t silver. The ore reserves were estimated at 101.4mt of copper at 0.53%, 0.27g/t gold and 1.87g/t silver.